Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. Sells 910 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. lowered its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 15.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,948 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 910 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 4.6% of Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,534,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,489,574,000 after buying an additional 32,074 shares in the last quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 62.8% during the third quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 2,417 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,143,000 after acquiring an additional 932 shares during the period. Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.6% in the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,133,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Nwam LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at about $20,056,000. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $8,430,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on COST shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 target price (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ:COST opened at $939.68 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $417.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.18, a P/E/G ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $951.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $903.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $675.96 and a 52 week high of $1,008.25.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.25%.

About Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden. The company offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.